Gone are the days when individuals think of cooking as a task that should be carried out “only by ladies.” In the past, ladies had been traditionally relied upon to cook the meals for the family, do the dishes and clean the house, and be in-charge of just about every domestic task there is. However times have changed and ladies now play really different roles in society in contrast to what ladies of the previous decades had been used to. This change in gender roles has affected both women and men — particularly in terms of taking the lead kitchen. Today, both men and women now take pleasure in the art of cooking. Individuals with exceptional culinary abilities are highly compensated. For that reason, it is no wonder that the tension that used to component and parcel of cooking is now experienced by both men and ladies. Food, after all, is about pleasing the senses of people who partake of one’s kitchen creations.
Cooking and stress aren’t frequently associated with each other. The word “cooking” easily implies gustatory pleasures and not stress which is often associated with one’s work at the office or to problems at home.However it should not be a surprise to know that stress and anxiety now affect the men and women who do the cooking as much as the salesman who attempts to meet his daily quotas or the manager who faces massive organizational challenges.
In restaurants, for example, you will find now more male cooks or chefs. These kitchen specialists follow a so-called “chef’s ladder” that defines the positions and particular tasks of every person in the kitchen. There is the head chef or “Chef de Cuisine” who visualizes the dishes in accordance with the restaurant idea of dining. Next would be the Executive Chef, who really runs the whole kitchen, manage the costs, hire and fire staff, revamp the menu, do certain administrative tasks. Under them would be the Sous Chef who make the daily specials, takes inventory, watches over the staff, and does the hands-on work in the kitchen. Also called the “Expediter”, the Sous Chef makes sure that the food gets to the table on time, a job that demands coordination and time management. With the same level as the sous chef, the pastry chef is in-charge of the pastry section of the restaurant. Mainly women reserved for women, this task demands preparation of chocolates, souffles, and sweet pastries.
Under these chefs would be the line cooks who are the ones who really cook the food. The line cooks are divided according to particular cooking specialty. An additional key person in the kitchen will be the Chef de Garde Manger who manages the cold food section that includes the salads and desserts.
When you have watched an Episode of the t.v. cooking show, Iron chef, you would most likely recognize how stressful it is to work as a chef or a line cook. In that show, the cameras usually show the stress and anxiety in the chef’s faces as they attempt to prepare a certain quantity of dishes under time pressure. Anxiety is also seen on the chef’s faces when the judges are sampling their dishes.
In another well-known reality-based television show called Hell’s Kitchen, several people enter as contestants in a game that is supposed to choose the next “big chef” in town. Being a reality show, Hell’s Kitchen often shows the stress and anxiety on the faces of the contestants while the host shouts and gets mad at them for not performing certain issues right in the kitchen. Anxiety grips each contestant as they try to battle out to win the throne of being the next best chef.
